NOVATO, Calif. -- The Marin County district attorney filed a murder charge Friday against a repeat offender motorcyclist who fatally struck a nine-year-old Novato girl and seriously injured her father as they crossed a busy street.

The man has a drunk-driving record going back nearly 20 years.

A steady stream of people visited a makeshift memorial for Melody Osheroff in the San Marin neighborhood of Novato to leave cards and flowers. New information about the man who hit the girl and her father only deepens the grief.

Families who live in the neighborhood feel the accident could have happened any of them,

The Osheroffs were struck by a speeding motorcyclist ran a stop sign and mowed them down in a crosswalk. Father and daughter were rushed to emergency rooms. Melody died the next day.

In charges filed Friday, Marin County District Attorney Ed Berberian indicated 43-year-old Edward Schaefer is a murder candidate because his blood alcohol level at the time of the crash was 1.6 -- twice the legal limit -- and because there is “implied malice" due to his drunk-driving history.

"He's going to be charged with murder," said Berberian. "He has six chargeable DUI priors, prior to this particular incident. And the public record will show there may be more beyond those six."

Schaefer remains hospitalized under police guard for his crash injuries. He has served state prison time for domestic violence and has racked up DUIs in Marin, Sonoma, and Reno dating back to 1990. He was most recently charged with a DUI in 2004.

"He would have served some type of county jail time for these various convictions," said Berberian. "Again, a lot of that information we're in the process of collecting."

As the case moves forward, the community has rallied behind the Osheroff family with a vigil Thursday night and a fund being set up Friday. Melody's father Aaron Osheroff has had a leg amputated and faces a long recovery.

Grief counselors were on hand at Melody's school all day. Many students worked on a "helping hands" project, making a wish on each finger to remember the fourth grader.

Parents and children alike are struggling with the tragedy. The accident at the busy intersection has some residents in the neighborhood calling for the installation of a traffic signal.

"It's hard to come here and hear about this, and turn the page and move on," said parent Evan Domingo. "This one was a little bit too close."

Besides murder, Edward Schaefer faces manslaughter and mayhem charges. The DA said he wants Schaeffer in prison for life.

Parties interested in making a donation to the family fund can send a check or money order to the address below:

The Oscheroff Family Fund
Wells Fargo Novato Branch
1590 Grant Ave.
Novato, CA 94945